Services
Indefinite Leave to Remain
Check the route, qualifying period and evidence before applying for settlement.
For people approaching the end of a qualifying period on a route that leads to settlement.
Services within Indefinite Leave to Remain
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Ten-Year Long Residence
Settlement based on ten years of lawful continuous residence.
Read more -
Settlement for Armed Forces Families
Settlement for serving and discharged forces personnel and their families.
Read more -
Settlement on a Work Route
Settlement after the qualifying period on a work route.
Read more
Indefinite leave to remain, often called settlement, lets a person live in the UK without a time limit. Each route has its own settlement rules, and the qualifying period depends on the route, not on how long you have simply been here.
Settlement routes we assist with
- Partner and parent settlement under the family rules.
- Skilled Worker and other work-route settlement.
- Ten-year long residence, where the residence has been lawful and continuous.
- UK Ancestry, BN(O) and HM Armed Forces settlement.
- Settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme.
What we will check
We check the full immigration history, qualifying period, continuous residence, absences, current permission, suitability, English, the Life in the UK test, any financial requirement and whether you are applying under the correct route.
Settlement rules are changing
The Government has consulted on an "earned settlement" model that would lengthen the qualifying period for many people. At the time of writing those proposals were not in the Immigration Rules. Check the current position before relying on a date, and do not apply before your qualifying period is complete.
Settlement on protection routes, on the ten-year private-life route or on a discretionary basis is outside our Level 1 authorisation.
How WLIS can help
- 1 We check that the route suits your plans and that the matter is a straightforward one within our IAA Level 1 authorisation.
- 2 We review your eligibility and your documents, and explain plainly anything that needs attention.
- 3 We give you a document checklist written for your circumstances rather than a generic one.
- 4 We prepare the application form and supporting documents, and you check and approve the final information before anything is submitted.
- 5 We help with submission, biometrics or identity steps, and your eVisa and UKVI account after the decision.
What we can and cannot help with
We provide advice and application assistance for straightforward immigration matters within our IAA Level 1 Immigration authorisation. Where a matter falls outside that authorisation — for example because it involves adverse immigration history, a discretionary or human-rights claim, an administrative review, an appeal or tribunal work — we will tell you and signpost or refer you to an adviser authorised at the appropriate level.
If an application is refused, we will explain the decision and whether any further work remains within our Level 1 authorisation. Where an administrative review, an appeal or other higher-level casework is needed, we will signpost or refer you to an appropriately authorised adviser. We do not provide appeal or tribunal representation.
UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) makes the final decision on every application. No immigration adviser can guarantee that an application will be approved.
Questions clients often ask
How much time outside the UK am I allowed?
Most work and family routes limit absences across the qualifying period, commonly measured in any rolling twelve months, and long residence applications are assessed differently again. Because the counting rules vary by route, work out your absences against the right rule before you apply.
Do I have to take the Life in the UK test?
For most settlement applications, yes, along with meeting the English language requirement at the level your route sets. Exemptions exist based on age and on certain long-term physical or mental conditions, evidenced by a medical practitioner. Book the test early: appointment availability is the usual delay.
Can I lose indefinite leave once I have it?
Yes. It generally lapses after a continuous absence of more than two years, and it can be revoked in some circumstances. If you expect to spend a long period abroad, take advice before you go, and consider whether citizenship would give you the security you want.
Official sources we check
We check what we publish against the Home Office's own guidance. These are the GOV.UK pages behind the advice on this site — use them to confirm anything you read here, because the rules change and the official page is always the current one.
- UK visas and immigration (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Applying for a visa from outside the UK (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Extending or switching inside the UK (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Family visas and financial requirement (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Skilled Worker and sponsor rules (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Sponsor guidance collection (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Student visa (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Graduate visa (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Standard Visitor (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Returning resident visa (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Settlement (indefinite leave to remain) (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Long residence (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- British citizenship (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- EU Settlement Scheme (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- British National (Overseas) visa (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- HM Armed Forces settlement (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- eVisas and UKVI accounts (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- DNA evidence in immigration applications (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Home Office immigration and nationality fees (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
- Immigration Advice Authority (opens on GOV.UK in a new tab)
GOV.UK content is published by the UK government and is not part of this website.
Talk to us about indefinite leave to remain
Tell us what you want to apply for, the status you hold now and when your current permission ends. We will confirm whether the matter is within our Level 1 authorisation and offer a suitable appointment.
The enquiry button opens the secure WLIS enquiry form on enquiry.wlisuk.com in a new tab. Please do not send identity documents until we ask for them.